


Seaside Rendezvous

by kcstories



Category: Harry Potter - Rowling
Genre: Canon Divergence, Fluff, HP: EWE, Harry & Ginny friendship, M/M, flangst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2007-07-05
Updated: 2007-07-05
Packaged: 2017-10-10 05:46:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,544
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/96242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kcstories/pseuds/kcstories
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A chance meeting in Brighton, a few years after the war.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Seaside Rendezvous

**Author's Note:**

> Pairing: Harry/Draco (Neville/Ginny; past Harry/Ginny)   
> Warnings: AU-ish, fluff, flangst.   
> A/N: The Potterverse is JKR's, not mine.

Arms linked, Harry and Ginny make their way across the pleasantly crowded pier.

"Come on," Ginny says enthusiastically. "We have to get a _99_ while we're here! It's a Weasley family tradition."

Harry casts a curious glance at the ice cream stand and gulps in astonishment. "Um, Gin, that queue is enormous!"

"Yes." She chuckles. "I know, but I promise you, the end result will be more than worth the trouble. Come on!"

Harry rolls his eyes and braces himself for a lot of standing in line, until a flash of platinum blond hair in the distance causes him to stop dead in his tracks and do a double take.

_What the hell?_

"I- I- um," he stammers, releasing Ginny's arm. "Could you get the ice creams? I think I saw someone I know over there, I- I'll be right back."

Ginny frowns when she, too, recognises the figure in the crowd. She bites her lip, worried that what Harry is about to undertake mightn't be such a smart move on his part. Then again, she supposes he's old enough to know what he's doing. She only hopes he's also mature enough not to cause some big, embarrassing scene in public, and certainly not one involving magic.

"Malfoy?" Harry says mere moments later, slightly out of breath from jogging over.

At the sound of his name, the tall, blond man turns around "Potter?" he exclaims, his expression incredulous. "What on earth are you doing here?"

"Um, I've come to enjoy a day out at the fair?" Harry smiles awkwardly. "Besides," he adds, trying to make a joke, "are you quite sure you're in the right place yourself? This really doesn't seem like a suitable venue for a Malfoy, with so many Muggles scattered about."

Harry's attempt at humour falls flat as Draco snaps back, "Well, it's not as though I can still show my face at a wizarding occasion, is it? Especially since that face seems to resemble my father's more and more with each passing day."

Harry swallows hard. "You're looking, well, though," he offers feebly; which, he realises, is a rather dumb statement to make, but it would be even worse to mention what he's really thinking, namely that Draco looks incredible. No, Harry can't very well say that out loud. Such wouldn't be appropriate, not after everything...

"I'm here with-" he adds instead, eager to change the subject while Draco remains silent and keeps on giving him a questioning, almost challenging look.

Draco ventures a guess: "One of the Weasleys, I presume?"

"Um, yeah. Ginny."

"Of course." Draco sneers. "How predictable. I'd best be going, then."

"No. Wait!" Harry grabs Draco's right arm. "This-This isn't what you think; I-"

Draco shakes his head, and roughly yanks his arm free from Harry's grip. "You don't owe me any explanations, Potter," he says, his tone laced with bitterness. "Besides, you broke up with her first. It seems rather fitting that you should get back together with her first, too. Just don't expect me to stick around in case you ever feel like going full circle."

"That's not- No, you've got it all wrong. Ginny and I-" He takes a deep breath. "We're not… involved; not like that."

"Oh?"

"No. Neville. You remember Neville Longbottom," Harry says quickly, almost stumbling on his words. "He's her husband now. They got married two years ago. Anyway, he's away for a month on special Auror training. She was just sitting around at home, bored and lonely, and I thought she could do with some cheering up, so I suggested coming here, like she and Ron, Fred and George sometimes did when they were kids. That's all."

Draco frowns. "So you two didn't get back together after the war?" he asks. He still doesn't look at all convinced.

Harry shakes his head. "I haven't been with anyone since—" He coughs nervously. "Not after you and I broke up."

"Correction, Potter: after you _dumped_ me. For my own good, supposedly, because apparently, you had the right to decide in my stead which dangers I was prepared to face."

"Draco, I was only trying to protect you."

"Like you did the little Weasley over there?"

"Yes."

"Well, maybe she didn't mind being mollycoddled, but I did..." He crosses his arms defiantly, and adds—in a softer tone, since he's attracting the attention of passers-by and that's the last thing he wants or needs, "It was my risk to take, Potter, not yours. I should have been the one to determine whether or not our relationship was worth it. I didn't need you to make my decision for me."

"I know, but-" Harry sighs. "I didn't want your death on my conscience too. I would have rather-" He swallows a sudden lump in his throat. "I wanted you to survive that war," he finally says. "Whatever the cost."

Draco merely shakes his head, and it's starting to dawn on Harry that perhaps he shouldn't have approached him in the first place. Too much happened back then, too much time has gone by since, and some things are just too broken to still be mended.

"So you're still mad about that, even after six years?" Harry asks softly. "I'd apologise, Draco, I really would, but you see, I- The thing is, I'm really not all that sorry, because you may hate me all over again now, but at least you're still around to do it."

"Bloody hell." Draco sighs in exasperation. "I don't hate you, Harry." He runs a hand through his hair. It's longer now than it was during the war and Harry wonders whether it still feels as soft to the touch as it used to and then he realises he's staring rather blatantly and swiftly forces himself to shift his focus back to the present.

"I mean," Draco finally says. "I'm just- terribly disappointed."

"_You're_ disappointed?" This time it's Harry's turn to sneer. "You're the one who decided to do a runner when the war was over, to cut off every means of contact with me. You refused to answer my letters, ignored my Firecalls. You even sent Hermione away when she'd gone all the way to bloody France just to talk to you. You told her you never wanted to see me again."

"You _hurt_ me, Potter."

"I know," Harry says softly, "and so you paid me right back. Does that make us even now?"

Draco doesn't have the answer to that, so he remains quiet, and for a few very long minutes, the two men stand there looking at one another, both of them wondering how they ever got to this point, how they could have been so stubborn and foolish.

Harry's the one who finally breaks the silence, because one of them has to. "Um, look, would you like to join us?"

"Well, I-" Draco seems truly surprised, but to Harry's relief, clearly not opposed to the idea. "Won't Weasley mind?"

"She's Longbottom now, technically," Harry replies with a smile, "but I really think she'd prefer you to call her Ginny."

"Right, and can you also guarantee that she won't hex me, Potter? It would look terribly suspicious if she did, you realise, bang in the middle of Muggle Brighton."

Harry chuckles, because even after all those years, Draco is still Draco. "No, Malfoy," he says, "I don't think she begrudges you anything."

"Not even all those times you and I snogged in her and Granger's tent during the war?"

Even at the age of twenty-four, Harry blushes at the memory. "I don't think she even knows about that."

"Ah. Let's keep it that way, then, shall we?"

"All right."

Draco smiles. It's a warm, genuine smile and Harry's a little amazed that being around Draco can still give him butterflies in his stomach, even after all that time.

All things considered, he still doesn't regret putting their relationship on hold when he did, but he is sorry for having given up on Draco so easily. After the war, he should have tried harder, been more persistent about winning him back.

Harry wonders whether it really is too late, or if, perhaps….

"Draco," he blurts out, "are you seeing anyone at the moment?"

Draco shakes his head. "No one."

Harry takes a deep breath. He holds out his hand. "So, shall we?" he offers with a smile.

Draco smirks. "Are you honestly expecting me to hold hands with you, here and now, with a whole bunch of Muggles for an audience?"

"Of course." Harry grins deviously. "Why not? Are you scared, Malfoy?"

Draco shakes his head, grabs Harry's hand and all but drags him in the direction of where Ginny is standing, still waiting patiently for her turn to order.

As if her sixth sense tells her that something is about to happen, she briefly looks around to see two young men swiftly heading in her direction. She notices their clasped hands and wide grins and she realises that against all odds, their impromptu reunion was a success.

"So, what'll it be, Miss?" the ice cream seller asks, snapping her out of her reverie.

"Two _99_s, please," Ginny answers with a wide smile, only to immediately correct herself. "No, on second thought, make it three."


End file.
